The Waiting Game
by simsperson56
Summary: Sherman and Penny must figure out a way to kill time on Christmas morning while they are waiting for Mr. Peabody to wake up so Sherman and Penny can open their presents. A special one-shot for Christmas.


**As you all know, Christmas is coming up very soon, and I felt the need to post a Christmas one-shot. I really hope you enjoy it!**

* * *

Christmas Eve brought cold weather, clouds, and snowfall to the bustling metropolis of New York City, where Sherman, Penny, and Mr. Peabody sat in the apartment around the fireplace.

It was nine o' clock in the evening. Sherman was starting to grow sleepy, but at the same time, he really felt like he would never be able to sleep. Tomorrow was Christmas, and the trio was very excited for the special day. The apartment had completely transformed over the last few weeks. Holiday decorations were scattered in almost every possible place. Peabody bought Christmas plates, Christmas cutlery, Christmas mugs, Christmas everything. A bright, green, and beautiful Christmas tree stood next to the television. Ornaments that Peabody and Sherman crafted together were hung up on all the green branches. Red and green stockings hung from the fireplace.

"Wow, I can't believe tomorrow is Christmas!" Sherman cheered.

"I know, right?" Penny agreed. "Mr. Peabody, I'm sleeping over tonight. What about my presents?"

"Oh, don't worry about that. Your parents brought me your presents, and they're under the tree right now."

"Are you tired yet?" Sherman asked Penny.

"Eh, not really. A little bit, I guess."

Mr. Peabody looked down at the watch on his arm. "Well... it is getting a little bit late. Maybe you two should brush your teeth and get ready for bed."

"But Mr. Peabody, what about the tradition?" Sherman questioned.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot! Thank you for reminding me!" Mr. Peabody exclaimed.

Penny simply stared at the dog and the boy with a very strange look. "Umm... the tradition?"

Sherman immediately began to happily explain the tradition to the confused girl. "You see, Mr. Peabody lets me open one of my presents on Christmas Eve! Then I can open the rest in the morning!"

"Awesome!" Penny cheered. "My parents never do that!"

"Well, have they thought about it?" Peabody asked.

Penny stared down at the floor. "I... I actually don't know..."

Sherman said nothing. He rushed over to the tree and he began to sift through the pile of presents. After shaking each present a few times, he decided on a small present wrapped in red wrapping paper. The boy ripped it open and he was instantly overcome with joy.

"Oh my god!" Sherman yelled happily. "It's that new Pokémon game! Omega Ruby! How'd you know?"

Peabody chuckled at that comment. "How did I know? You wouldn't stop talking about it!"

"My turn!" Penny yelled happily, running over to the bright tree. However, unlike Sherman, she was puzzled at her giant pile of presents. She shook each one like a madman, trying to decide on a present. Eventually, she was throwing presents all over the place in desperation.

Sherman sighed. "Sometime today, Penny."

"I'm looking!" Penny yelled. But she wasn't making any progress. She was just making a huge mess.

Sherman sighed again. "Penny, it'll be Christmas morning by the time you finish!"

Penny grabbed a present that was similar in size to Sherman's. She quickly decided to rip it open and hope for the best. When the wrapping paper was gone, Penny was ecstatic.

"No way! It's the Alpha Sapphire game!" Penny exclaimed. "My mom doesn't even like me playing this!"

"What? Why?" said Sherman.

Penny shrugged. "My mom is worried that I'm gonna leave the house and try to travel the world capturing wild animals."

Sherman simply stared at the girl.

"Yeah, I have no idea."

"Whatever. It's funny how we both opened a Pokémon game! What a coincidence!" Sherman yelled.

Penny froze in place. "Um... yeah! It's a... coincidence..."

Sherman eyed Penny suspiciously, but he decided not to question the blonde girl.

"All right, I guess it's time for bed now!" Sherman said, running off with the game. Penny began to follow him.

"Wait!" Mr. Peabody called out.

The two kids stopped dead in their tracks.

"I need to talk to you about something, Sherman," said Mr. Peabody seriously.

"What?" Sherman said.

"It's about Christmas morning. This year, I really want to spend it together."

"What are you talking about?" Sherman laughed. "We always spend it together!"

"No. I mean that you always wake up really early and open your presents before I wake up! I want to open the presents _together _this year."

Sherman froze. "Wait... you mean I have to wait for you to wake up!?"

"I'll be up at 7:30!" Mr. Peabody added quickly. "Can you _please _wait for me to wake up so we can open the presents together?"

Sherman looked at the beagle. His eyes seemed to send a clear message to Sherman, and it made him feel guilty. He was his dad, and Sherman loved him. But waiting for him to wake up on Christmas morning seemed like was his worst nightmare at this time of year.

Finally, Sherman said, reluctantly and calmly, "Yes."

* * *

"No! No, no, no, no, no, no, no! I can't wait! No!" Sherman paced around his room, taking deep breaths in and out. He and Penny were now in their pyjamas; their teeth were brushed. Now, Penny was playing her new game while Sherman was having a mini heart attack. "Wait? On Christmas morning? Inconceivable!"

"Calm down, Sherman," said Penny, not looking up from her game.

"I can't! I've always woken up at like five in the morning, sometimes earlier, and then I go and open my presents early! I'm used to it! What am I supposed to do?"

"You wait," said Penny.

Sherman glared at the girl. "No, really? I thought that I was supposed to steal Mr. Peabody's scooter, drive to Mexico, and then grab a bunch of sombrero hats and bathe under the moonlight!"

"Umm... okay."

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" Sherman yelled.

"Go dump noodles on the capital of Russia!"

"Oh my god, Penny! Will you stop being weird and random?"

Penny started to laugh like a maniac. "I can't! It's funny! And you're kind of asking for it, you know."

"You're so weird!"

Penny stopped laughing immediately. "Well, you're no better, mister Mexican sombrero hat moonlight bather!"

Sherman immediately stopped talking, and he grabbed his 3DS and began to play his new game. After an hour or two, he and Penny got really tired and they put down their games and they shut off the light.

* * *

Sherman opened his eyes and turned to his right to the alarm clock on the night stand. To his dismay, it read 4:52. He had over two and a half hours to kill before Mr. Peabody woke up.

The boy didn't feel like playing his game; he couldn't get back to sleep; he didn't want to break his promise to his loving father. Slowly, the boy crawled out of his bed and waddled over to the bedroom door. He was almost there when a voice echoed through the dark room: "Can't sleep?"

Sherman turned towards the source of the voice. Penny was lying up in bed, and she looked bored.

"Yeah, I can't sleep," Sherman replied.

"Come on!" Penny whispered. "Let's go to that computer in the living room. There's something I want to show you."

Sherman silently agreed. The two kids quietly slipped out of the bedroom and into the living room. An eerie silence filled the air. Penny hopped onto the computer. When she got on the internet, she went to YouTube. Penny showed Sherman a few videos about a person who thought that it would be really funny to mix in laxatives in treats and smoothies. It never ended very well for the victim. After the laxative prank videos, Sherman and Penny watched other prank videos. But they could only watch so many prank videos before boredom set in once again, and the two kids logged off of the computer.

It was only 6:18.

"Now what are we supposed to do?" Penny whined.

"Go tell your boyfriend that his mom is fat."

Penny glared at Sherman. "Sherman, I swear to god; I will kill you with a knife!"

"That's not violent," Sherman mumbled sarcastically.

Penny groaned. "So what do you wanna do? More videos?"

"No," said Sherman.

"Play our games?"

"Nah."

"Watch TV?"

"Yawn."

"Okay, what about hide-and-seek?"

"Okay, fine. That sounds like the most fun right now."

"I'll hide first!" Penny said.

Sherman simply covered his eyes and began to count to twenty in a normal tone, a tone that was loud enough to be audible, but not loud enough to wake up Mr. Peabody.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Sherman said, uncovering his eyes.

The first thing Sherman did was to look around. It was a little bit difficult to search the place due to the darkness that filled the apartment. The place wasn't nearly as cheerful without the lights of the Christmas tree or any of the Christmas decorations in the room. Sherman could have gone and turned on the light, but he actually didn't feel like it. He began to realize that it was actually a lot of fun to play hide-and-seek in the dark.

Sherman waddled through the dark apartment in search of the blonde-haired girl. He looked behind the curtains. He looked in the dark corners and he reached his hands in to make sure that she wasn't hiding in the dark. She wasn't.

Sherman searched the bathroom for Penny, but she wasn't there. Sherman searched his bedroom. No Penny. Sherman searched the pantry in the kitchen. No sign of Penny anywhere. Sherman even tried to freeze in place without making the slightest noise to see if he could hear anything. Nothing.

Eventually, Sherman began to feel it. Frustration. It was growing by the second; it was digging its harsh claws into Sherman's skin. The girl was nowhere to be found. Eventually, Sherman even went over to turn on the lights in the apartment. There were still no signs of Penny.

Sherman angrily stormed into his bedroom, which was still plunged into darkness. "Penny!" he yelled quieter than normal. "I give up! Where are you? Just come out! Make some noise! Something!"

All of a sudden, a faint scratching noise emanated from a place that Sherman overlooked during his frantic search filled with frustration and anger. The closet.

Sherman slowly stepped towards the doors. It seemed like the doors were casting an evil spell on Sherman, like they were sucking the happiness and Christmas joy from the boy. He ignored it and swung open the doors.

Suddenly, a horrible sequence of events unfolded. Penny stood in front of Sherman with a green mask, and then she poured a bucket of liquid on Sherman. Sherman screamed as he was drenched in the mysterious liquid, and it wasn't water.

The boy cried for help as he was tackled to the ground, and then white feathers fell from above and they began to coat Sherman in layers of feather, like snow during a blizzard. Sherman's screams and cries for help were muffled by the feathers.

Suddenly, his leg was grabbed by the evil blonde girl, and he flailed in response. He couldn't see anything, but he could just feel a heavy suit slipping onto him, and then he couldn't see anything. Suddenly, the noises stopped, and the room was filled with dead silence, except for the sounds of photos being taken from an iPhone.

"Merry Christmas, Sherman! You look adorable!" Penny cooed. "You look just like Santa!"

Sherman couldn't see very well, but everything around him suddenly got very bright, and Mr. Peabody stepped into the room with a panicked expression. Penny froze in place while Santa-Sherman continued to lie on the floor.

"Mr. Peabody!" Penny cried out. "I'm sorry! I'm really sorry! I was bored! I just couldn't wait anymore!"

"Come on, Sherman," the beagle said calmly, "let's get you out of this thing."

Mr. Peabody slipped the Santa suit off of the boy, and his eyes were overwhelmed by the light in the room. Then, the dog brushed the feathers off of him, leaving Sherman covered in the mysterious liquid, whatever it was.

"Look, guys," said Peabody, "technically, you broke my promise. But it's Christmas, so I'm feeling warm and generous. Sherman, are you okay?"

Sherman giggled. "Yeah, I'm fine. That was actually a lot of fun, now that I think of it!"

"Penny, you're not in trouble. And Sherman, since I'm up right now, and you at least _tried_ to wait for me to wake up, I'm going to let you open your presents now."

The two kids were stunned after hearing that. "Are you serious?" Sherman asked.

Mr. Peabody smiled warmly. "Yes, I am."

Sherman and Penny looked at each other happily before they cheered loudly and rushed over to the tree. Within a half a minute, the two kids had transformed into savage beasts, ripping open the presents like there was no tomorrow. Sherman received some more video games, and some cool toys to play with. Penny received pretty similar things, as well as a diary and some makeup. Penny was a girl, so she definitely had her girly side.

Mr. Peabody smiled warmly at the excited children while they were opening their parents. He was mostly happy about the fact that this was the first Christmas where he was there to see Sherman's excitement while he was opening his presents, and his best friend was also there. To the white beagle, it was easily the best Christmas ever, despite the fact that he was rudely awakened to Penny trying to stuff Sherman into a Santa suit.

Whatever. People do crazy things when they're bored.

When the kids were finished with the presents, Penny immediately wandered over to the computer and logged in again, while Sherman went over to Mr. Peabody.

"Do you like your presents?" Mr. Peabody asked.

"Yes! They're awesome! Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome, Sherman."

"Look, Mr. Peabody. I never knew how much fun it is to open presents when you're here. From now on, I promise to always wait for you on Christmas morning."

Mr. Peabody was stunned. He found it hard to believe that Sherman was actually saying that. The beagle looked at Sherman's smiling face to make sure that the boy wasn't telling a lie.

"Sherman, that's very sweet. Just don't go crazy like Penny did this morning, okay?"

Sherman suddenly started to giggle like a little girl, and then he happily looked up at Mr. Peabody. "I'll do my best. So, are we gonna have brunch?"

"Yeah, definitely!" Mr. Peabody cheered. Then, he suddenly got very disgusted. "But... you might want to have a shower first."

Sherman was shocked. He was so happy with his presents and Mr. Peabody's company that he totally forgot that he was drenched in a mysterious liquid. "You're right; I really should have a shower."

Sherman got up and left to head to the bathroom, but suddenly, he froze. He didn't know why. It's as if someone, or something, was telling him to stop moving.

Sherman turned towards the computer suspiciously at Penny. He suddenly got the vibe that Penny was doing something bad. "Penny... what are you doing?" Sherman asked.

"Nothing."

"Are you posting the Santa pictures on Instagram!?" Sherman roared.

"I already did... please don't tell me you're mad!"

"No," said Sherman. The boy was surprised to hear himself saying it. "I'm not mad. Someday, I will laugh at this, as well as all my other humiliating stories."

"Thank you for not being mad," Penny smiled. "It really means a lot to me."

"It's Christmas!" Sherman cheered. "I don't want to be mad. This is already the best Christmas ever, and I want it to stay that way."

Sherman said nothing else as he wandered into the bathroom to take his shower. As the boy showered, some thoughts occurred to him: he had had a lot of humiliating incidents in the past, but now, he was able to look back and laugh at them instead of being embarrassed. Now, pictures of Sherman lying on the floor in a Santa suit were on Instagram, but the boy knew that some day, he would look back and laugh about it.

And this time, that day would be today.

* * *

**There it is! I really hope you loved that Christmas one-shot! I should have a new chapter of A World in Winter being posted soon.**

**Have a Merry Christmas, everyone! See you later.**


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